A physically challenged person could be considered for appointment as a teacher under the three per cent quota for the disabled only if he gets the minimum qualifying mark of 90 in the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET), the Madras High Court said on Monday.
Justice D.Haripanthaman passed the order on a writ petition by K.Kumaravelu of Thiruvenkadu in Nagapattinam district. The petitioner’s contention was that being a physically challenged person, he should be accommodated in the three per cent quota and appointed a Secondary Grade Teacher by giving necessary relaxation in the pass marks in TET. According to him, for a physically challenged person, the present requirement of 90 marks should be relaxed and fixed at a lower level. He had obtained 83 marks in the TET in 2012. The government had announced the appointment of 12,000 teachers. He made a representation to the State government on April 16 this year.
Mr.Kumaravelu prayed the court for a direction to the Chairman, Teacher Recruitment Board, to appoint him a Secondary Grade Teacher under the priority quota of physically challenged based on his representation.
Additional Government Pleader P.Sanjay Gandhi said no person could claim any relaxation in the matter of qualifying marks in TET. It was not a competitive examination. The TET could be compared to that of the Diploma in Teacher Education examination. One should get minimum marks of 90 for a pass in TET.
Mr. Justice Hariparanthaman said the qualifying mark was fixed to ensure quality. The reservation provided for physically challenged persons had not been taken away by prescribing the minimum qualifying marks.
He said the court had considered the issue in a batch of writ petitions earlier and had decided against the petitioners. In the light of that order, the present petition would stand dismissed.
